'Party patrol' has changed

With teen communications tools (IM, phone-texting, comments in profiles) silent now, parents have fewer cues about busy teen socializing. But it does help to be on your child's friends list. "On MySpace, users can send out a bulletin to everyone on their friend list - potentially hundreds of people - that shows up on all their friends' home pages. Students also post messages to each other that may mention parties," the Seattle Times reports. "Parents also need to monitor social networking sites such as MySpace after parties are over," the Times cites one online-safety expert as saying. "Pictures of illegal activities or provocative dress" can be a problem later, when college admissions officers or prospective employers are checking out teen profiles too (the Seattle Times's source is Nancy Willard, director of the Eugene, Ore.-based Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use). Another silent communications tool, instant messaging (which 90% of teens and young adults use), doesn't work the same way, but at least parents can IM their kids when they seem to be very focused on their computer screen and ask what their weekend plans are!